Category: series

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Crystal Cloud by Claudiu Murgan

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SF Canada member Claudiu Murgan is launching the sequel to his novel Water Entanglement, a spiritually-inspired futuristic tale revolving around the nature of water.

Crystal Cloud is an eco-fiction story that continues the exploration of water’s ability to heal us when treated with reverence – or hurt us when treated with ignorance.

Water was always on our side—we were the ones who strayed! After the initial shock of the world’s water awakening, humanity comes together to put measures in place to ease adverse climate changes. Cherry Mortinger, the limnologist behind Hayyin’s enigmatic identity, works on creating a universal language for water…

Learn more about Crystal Cloud at an online launch tonight at 7pm EST via live stream on YouTube and Facebook.

“A unique writer voice, a refreshing storyline, and a future that we may all see before too long! Tension, pace, and real-life issues make this a novel to read. Wow, what a story!” – Jonas Saul, author of the Sarah Roberts Series

Claudiu Murgan was born in Romania and has called Canada home since 1997. He is a graduate of the Polytechnic Institute of Bucharest and during his university years he was involved in the Romanian fandom, writing and organizing local events. He also participated at Science-Fiction conventions in both Europe and North America, meeting contemporary writers with the utmost impact on this genre.

He received several awards for his short stories and novellas that were published in SF Journal and Science & Technology Magazine. Claudiu was a member of the Friends of the Merril Collection in Toronto, organizing the first Science-Fiction art show in the association’s history.

Learn more about Claudiu and explore his other titles at claudiumurgan.com.

Order your copy of Crystal Cloud at Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and iBooks.

 

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Good Intentions by Ira Nayman

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SF Canada member and past President Ira Nayman’s new novel is Good Intentions: The Multiverse Refugees Trilogy: First Pie in the Face. It is the sixth book in the Transdimensional Authority/Multiverse series published by Elsewhen Press.

At the end of You Can’t Kill the Multiverse (But You Can Mess With its Head), Doctor Alhambra, the chief scientist of the Transdimensional Authority, set up an alarm to warn him if a universe is succumbing to the universe-killing machine that is at the heart of the story. But how would the Transdimensional Authority respond if that alarm went off?

In Good Intentions, we find out. In the process we not only meet the most unusual refugees in fiction (probably), learn what Noomi Rapier’s brother does (and with whom), revisit Dingle Dell, and finally discover what happened to chapter seventeen of The Multiverse is a Nice Place to Visit But I Wouldn’t Want to Live There.

In his past lives, Ira Nayman was, among other things: a cave painter whose art was not appreciated in his lifetime; several nameless peasants who died before their 20th birthday during the Dark Ages; a toenail fungus specialist in the court of Louis XIV; and Alan Turing’s scullery maid.

In his current incarnation, Ira is the creator of Les Pages aux Folles, a Web site of political and social satire. Three collections of Alternate Reality News Service (ARNS) stories (Alternate Reality Ain’t What It Used To Be, What Were Once Miracles Are Now Children’s Toys and Luna for the Lunies!) which originally appeared on the website have been self-published in print. Two new volumes of ARNS stories – The Street Finds Its Own Uses for Market Lateralization and The Alternate Reality News Service’s Guide To Sex, Love and Robots were published in 2013. Ira has produced the pilot for a radio series based on stories from the first two ARNS books; “The Weight of Information, Episode One” can be heard on YouTube.

Ira has also written a series of stories that take place in a universe where matter at all levels of organization has become conscious. They feature Antonio Van der Whall, object psychologist. “A Really Useful Engine” has been published in Even Birds Are Chained To The Sky and Other Tales: The Fine Line Short Story Collection and “Escalation is Academic” has appeared in the anthology UnCONventional. “If the Mountain Won’t Come to Mohammed” can be found in Here Be Monsters. “Thinking is the Worst Way to Travel” has been accepted into Explorers: Beyond the Horizon.

In another life (but still within this incarnation) Ira has a Masters degree in Media Studies from The New School for Social Research which was conducted entirely online. He also has a PhD in Communications from McGill University. Ira taught New Media part-time at Ryerson University for five years. He is a winner of the 2010 Jonathan Swift Satire Writing Contest.

Find Good Intentions at Amazon, and find Ira’s satirical writings and comedic doodles at http://www.lespagesauxfolles.ca/

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Epic Fantasy in a Boxed Set

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Two SF Canada members share mysteries and magic in Secrets & Spells, a bundle of six epic fantasy novels. Dive into these fantastic realms of richly drawn characters and become lost in engrossing stories of friendship, adversity, and love.

Krista D. Ball’s The Demons We See (The Dark Abyss of Our Sins #1) is part of an ongoing series. Society was rocked when the Cathedral appointed Allegra, Contessa of Marsina, to negotiate the delicate peace talks between the rebelling mage slaves and the various states. Not only was she a highborn mage, she was a nonbeliever and a vocal objector against the supposed demonic origins of witchcraft.
Demons weren’t real, she’d argued, and therefore the subjection of mages was unlawful. That was all before the first assassination attempt. That was before Allegra heard the demonic shrieks. All before everything changed. Now Allegra and her personal guards race to stabilize the peace before the entire known world explodes into war with not just itself, but with the abyss from beyond.
So much for demons not being real.
Find more of Krista’s work at http://kristadball.com/

Jane Glatt‘s Unguilded (The Mage Guild #1) features Kara Fonti, who, at sixteen, still has no magic. But Mage Guild, the most powerful of all the Guilds in Tregella, has a use for her – they will force her to bear children for men who do have magic. Arabella Fonti, to protect her own status within the guild, pushes her daughter to do the unthinkable – run away to live outside the guild system.
But unguilded are not welcome in Tregella, especially on the magical chain of islands of the capital Rillidi. In increasing danger of being arrested or killed, Kara finds refuge on Old Rillidi, the original island that was neither created by magic nor controlled by one of the guilds.
On Old Rillidi, Kara discovers true friends, makes a home for herself, and learns more about her strange ability to “see” magic. But the Mage Guild will not let her go, and it is here where she feels safest that Kara is betrayed . . .
This novel and the rest of Jane’s series can be found at http://janeglatt.com

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Kickstarter for Mysterion 2

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Enigmatic Mirror Press–co-owned by SF Canada member Kristin Janz–has launched a Kickstarter to fund a 2nd volume of their anthology Mysterion.

Mysterion pays professional rates of 6 cents/word (US) for speculative fiction that engages meaningfully with the Christian faith. Submissions from authors of all backgrounds–Christian or otherwise–are welcome, and Volume 2 will open to submissions as soon as the Kickstarter is funded. Enigmatic Mirror Press’s mandate is to publish fiction that may not fit comfortably in either religious or mainstream publishing; stories that aren’t afraid to ask difficult questions, and that avoid simplistic answers.

Mysterion: Rediscovering the Mysteries of the Christian Faith (Volume 1) included stories by Beth Cato, Kenneth Schneyer, David Tallerman, and 17 other authors. The anthology received positive reviews from Fantastic Stories of the Imagination, Cemetery Dance Online, and Tangent Online; and 4 stories appeared on the Tangent Online 2016 Recommended Reading List.

Like Volume 1, Volume 2 will be available in print and ebook formats. Kickstarter rewards include copies of the anthology, posters of the cover art, and more!

The Kickstarter campaign will remain live through August 18, 2017.

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Tesseracts 20 – Compostela

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SF Canada is well-represented in the newest Tesseracts (the twentieth in the series), published by Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy. Compostela is edited by Spider Robinson (an SF Canada member) and James Alan Gardner, and includes stories and/or poetry by SFC members Chantal Boudreau, Rhea Rose, Robert Dawson, Nancy S.M. Waldman, Leslie Brown, Linda DeMeulemeester, and Matthew Hughes.

From the publisher’s website: The stories contained within the pages of Compostela are a reflection of the world we live in today; where science produces both wonders and horrors; and will leave us with a future that undoubtedly will contain both. Journeys to the stars may be exhilarating and mind-expanding, but they can also be dangerous or even tragic. SF has always reflected that wide range of possibilities.

About the title of this anthology:
For more than 1,000 years, Santiago de Compostela (Compostela means “field of stars”) has attracted pilgrims to walk to the cathedral that holds St. James the apostle’s relics. The stories in this anthology in their own way tell the tale of futuristic travelers who journey into the dark outer (or inner) reaches of space, searching for their own connections to the past, present and future relics of their time.

Compostela is currently available to order on Amazon Kindle, and will release in other ebook formats and in print in the fall of this year.

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2018 Young Explorer’s Adventure Guide

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Today marks the launch of a Kickstarter for the 2018 Young Explorer’s Adventure Guide from Dreaming Robot Press, which includes stories by SF Canada members Sherry D. Ramsey (“Station Run”), and Holly Schofield (“Fluffy Pets are Best”). This marks the fourth volume in this series, which aims to bring diverse and accessible science fiction to young readers. Last year’s volume was named an SFWA Star Project, and the series has received wide acclaim since its inception. Stories come from authors around the world.

Well-known SF writer Nancy Kress has contributed a story to each volume, and has said of the project: “When I was a child, the school library had a Girls’ Section, which included fairy tales, and a Boys’ Section, which included all the science fiction. Things have changed, of course, but not enough. There is a strong need for science fiction, as opposed to fantasy, aimed at girls, especially in the middle grades. This anthology is an important contribution to the effort to fill that need, and I’m delighted to be a part of it.”~ Nancy Kress, winner of six Nebulas, two Hugos, a Sturgeon, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award

The anthology will be available in print and ebook formats, and as well as claiming your own copy, pledge options include ways to sponsor copies for libraries. Find out more on the book’s Kickstarter page. The campaign runs until the second week in July, but extra perks are available to sponsors who pledge early!